HARBANS SINGH Vs. JASBIR SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is a tenant in one room along with common bath room and toilet on the ground floor of House No. 2236, Sector 21C, Chandigarh. An ejectment petition was filed against him by the respondent- landlord seeking his eviction on the ground of non-payment of rent. It is not disputed that the petitioner was duly served and he engaged a counsel to represent him in the case filed by the respondent-landlord.

(2.) THE Rent Controller required the petitioner-tenant to file his written statement on 4.6.2001. On the same day, he was to tender arrears of rent along with interest and costs etc. It is alleged that the petitioner fell ill and was confined to bed. He, therefore, could not attend to the proceedings before the Rent Controller on 4.6.2001. It is evident from the grounds of Revision filed in the instant case that the petitioner neither filed a written statement on 4.6.2001, nor tendered arrears of rent. Accordingly, the Rent Controller by an order dated 4.6.2001 struck off the defence of the petitioner.

(3.) THE contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner-tenant is that the Rent Controller erred in concluding that the provisions of Section 148 of the Code of Civil Procedure were not applicable for enlargement of time for filing the written statement. In order to canvass his aforesaid contention, learned counsel for the petitioner relied on Municipal Committee Kharkhoda v. Bhim Singh, 1987 Recent Revenue Reports 405, wherein the trial court had struck off the defence for non-deposit of costs and had also dismissed the application filed under Section 148 of the Code of Civil Procedure as not maintainable. In the aforesaid case this Court expressed its opinion as under :-